Center feeder



D. BERTINI.

CENTEIT'FEEDER.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 17, 1920.

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W/Ef/TU Patented Nov. 7, 1922.

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CENTER FEEDER. APPLICATION FiLED MAR. 17. I920.

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D. BERTINI.

CENTER FEEDER. APPLICATION FILED MAR. 11. 1920.

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Patented Nov. 7, 1922.

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DANTE BEIR'IINI, 013 BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOE TD THE WALTER M.

LOWNEY COMPANY, OF BOSTQN, MASSACHUSETTS, A CGHPORATION OF MASSACHUSETTS.

CENTER FEEDER.

Application filed March 17, 1920. Serial No. 366,569.

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that l, Dixrz'rn BnR'rINI, a subject of Victor Emmanuel, King of Italy, residing in Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Center Feeders, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to mechanism for feeding centers to chocolate-coating machines, though it may have other uses. The centers are made of sugar and other materials and are moulded, usually with a flat bottom surface, and it isv desirable to present these centers to the coating machine in which they are coated with chocolate or otherwise, resting on these bottom surfaces. Heretofore they have been so presented. by placing them in proper position on a feeding conveyor by hand, this service requiring the employment of a number of attendants who handle each center separately, placing it in proper position on a belt conveyor by which it is carried to the coating machine. Machines have been used. for this purpose but not satisfactorily. The purpose of my invention is to do this work automatically so that a single attendant only may be required to a machine.

My invention will be understood by reference to the drawings, in which it is shown in its preferred vform.

Fig. 1 is a plan view of such a machine.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof.

Fig. 3 is a cross section on; line 3--3 of Fig. 4, and

Fig. at is a longitudinal section on line 4-.--4t of F ig. 1.

A, A are supports for the frame on which the moving parts are mounted. In the support A is mounted a pulley A over which runs the conveyor belt a, the power shaft for this conveyor not being shown.

In the sides A of the frame are mounted two sets of guideways 7) and 0 for the idly reciprocating or jigger tables B and C.

D is a hopper which is mounted between the sides A of the frame. It has an opening at its bottom adapted to be closed by the gate E. The gate E slides in ways 6 in the sides A of the frame and is moved to open or close the mouth of the hopper by a rod E connected to a handle lever ll pivoted on the crossbar A. It will be seen that by moving the handle lever E the gate may he opened or closed. A spring e keeps it normally in closed position. In the support A are mounted two cams F, G, their shafts carrying pulleys F which. are belted together by the belt B". The pulley F has a wide face and in addition to the belt 13 carries the belt B which connects with a power shaft (not shown). Each cam has a groove f, g, and in each groove runs a cam roll 7, carried on the end of a link f 9 The link 7 connects with the under reciprocatingtable-B and the link with the upper reciprocating table C, and the diameter of the grooves g is such that the table B is given a more rapid reciprocation than that of the table C.

The. upper surface of thetable B cone prises a smooth slightly slanting section b and a section comprising longitudinal grooves which taper at the end as at and serve as passages to separate the centers as they are led to the conveyor a. The upper surface of the table C has a crosswisesection or depression a which leads up to crosswise rib 0 which separates it from a second concave section or depression 0 from which passages 0 lead. through a broken crosswise rib c to a flat section 0 which slopes down to the edge 0 of the table. The portion of the rib 0 between the passages c slopes up and down both fore and aft between the recesses 0 and the section 0 and also laterally to the passages 0*. Thus a number of opportunities are given to the center to be tumbled about and finally, because its cen ter of gravity is low, to land on. its flat bottom.

The hopper l) has a flexible (:(lg'o (Z preferably made as shown of a piece of cloth or canvas doubled back on itself and located to prevent the crushing of a center as the gate is closed.

In practice the centers are thrown into the hopper, and the tables B and (l arcrapidly reciprocated, the table B reciprocating or shaking somewhat faster than the table C. The gate E is then opened so that the centers fall onto the table and beause of the rapid reciprocation and sloping surface of the table C, move along thereon toward its front edge, riding up and tumbling over the rib c or other obstacles and either through one of the passages c or over one of the sections of the rib c from which they fall down onto the section 0 fromv which they travel down toward its edge 0 and onto the table B. By the more rapid reciprocation of the table B they are moved along and off that table through the grooves 32 and are delivered on their flat surfaces and in straight lines on the conveyor belt.

t will be seen that the tables B and C both slant toward their front edges so that the centers tend to move forward rather than backward, and owin to the general shape of the centers their path of travel and their tumbling causes them to land on their fiat bottoms before they are discharged onto the conveyor.

I do not mean to limit my invention to the precise construction shown, its novelty so far as I know lying in a means for so tumbling the centers that they are automatically delivered bottom side downto the coating machine.

The essentials of the invention are, means to feed the centers to one or more jigg'er tables and cause their movement. in a direction toward the conveyor belt and obstacles on the jigger tables to cause centers to tumble and land eventually in a predetermined position, with the addition of desirable means for aligning them so that they will be delivered in convenient position to be handled by the coating machine.

By centers I do not mean necessarily to be covered with chocolate but any other articles, edible or not, to which a viscous or other coating is to be applied.

What I claim asmy invention is 1. In a machine of the kind described, a feeding means and a rapidly reciprocating jigger table located below said feeding means to receive centers therefrom, means to reciprocate said jigger table, and means located on said jigger table comprising crosswise ribs adapted to tumble the centers and cause them to he delivered therefrom. in a predetermined position, the upper surface-of the igger table being at slight angle to he horizontal from. end.

In a machine of the kind described, a center feeding means, a jigger table one end of which is located to receive centers therefrom and means upper surface of said jigger table slanting slightly from its center-receiving end to its delivery end and being provided with obstacles adapted to cause said centers to be sugar centers its receiving to its delivery for reciprocating it, the

tumbled on their passage from one end of the jigger table to the other, said obstacles comprising a cross rib and a broken cross rib having ends sloping down to the normal level of the table to form passages into which the material fed may be delivered either progressively from the rear end of the table or laterally from the sloping ends of the broken ribs and from which they will be delivered towards the front end of the table. 3. In a machine of the kind described, a center-feeding means, two jigger tables, means for reciprocating them at different speeds, the more rapidly reciprocating table being located to receive centers from said receiving means,'the other jig 'er table being located to receive centers from said first named jigger table, the upper surface of both of said jigger tables slanting slightly from their receiving to their delivery ends and said firs -named jigger table being provided with obstacles comprising cross ribs adapted to tumble said centers as they are shaken from the receiving to the delivery end thereof. i

i. In a machine of the kind described, a center-feeding means, two jigger tables, means for reciprocating them at different speeds, the more rapidly reciprocating table being located to receive centers from said receiving means, the other jigger table being located to receive centers from said firstnamed table, the upper surface of both of said jigger tables slanting slightly from their receiving to their delivery ends and said first-named jigger table being provided with obstacles comprising cross ribs adapted to tumble said centers as they are shaken from the receiving to the delivery end thereof, and said second table being provided with means whereby the centers will be delivered therefrom in predetermined positions. V I I 5. In a machine of the kind described, two jigger tables, one overlapping the. other, and means for. reciprocating them at different speeds, one of said tables having crosswise ribs and the other longitudinal ribs, a hopper located to feed material to one of said jiggcr tables, a gate adapted to close the lower end of said hopper, said hopper having a flexible edge located to prevent the crushing of the material being fed upon the closing of the lower end of the hopper.

DANTE BERTINI.

IO U 

